tumblr. takes over UP.

By The Beacon | November 1, 2011 9:00pm
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(-- The Beacon)

By Kathryn Walters Staff Writer walters14@up.edu

Imagine a place where you can express your innermost thoughts and feelings. A place where people can give positive reinforcement for these emotions. A place where you can be unconditionally accepted.

No, it's not Alcoholics Anonymous. It's Tumblr.com.

Tumblr has risen in popularity over the last year. This website provides a new outlet for social networking and different means of social interaction. Millions of people worldwide have discovered the allure of Tumblr, and UP students are no exception.

"Anything on the Internet can be distracting," sophomore Camden Revell, who uses Tumblr regularly, said. "It's the curiosity that gets you."

Essentially, Tumblr is an online blogging site where users can post text, pictures, video, links, quotes and audio to their profiles. Users are followed by other users, who can "ask" questions and reblog pictures and videos they like to their own profiles. In addition to following their friends on Tumblr, users may also follow people they have never met, solely because they have similar interests.

"It's who you follow that makes it interesting," sophomore and avid Tumblr user Lauren Rapadas said.

Unlike Facebook, Tumblr allows the user to create a profile that protects their anonymity. According to freshman Karyna Brandariz, this makes Tumblr more welcoming than Facebook, where it is easy to be judged by others.

Brandariz first got a Tumblr account her junior year of high school, which helped her become closer to her friends.

"I learned a lot about my friends through Tumblr because they were comfortable with posting their opinions and feelings," Brandariz said.

But Revell said that although Tumblr's anonymity makes it a safer place to share ideas without fear of judgment, there is a line between honesty and too much information.

"Sometimes people post way too much stuff that I would never post," she said.

Another appealing aspect of Tumblr is its creativity. Users can personalize their accounts to their own individual styles through tools such as backgrounds, pictures, videos and quotes. The fun of personalizing your own account may explain Tumblr's upswing in popularity.

"There are more people wanting to be creative," Rapadas said. "Tumblr is a good place to start because it is so versatile."

Revell said the reason Tumblr has become so popular is because it allows more freedom of expression compared to Facebook.

"I think people like the idea of showing their personality more than just a status update," she said.

Because people on Tumblr constantly repost and blog about their opinions, it is easy for users to become distracted. Tumblr has a feature called the Dashboard where people's blogs that you follow are posted for you to review and respond to.

"It's different every time you go on," Rapadas said. "With Facebook, the only thing that changes is the news feed, and it gets boring."

Brandariz confessed that she spends at least an hour a day on Tumblr and considers herself addicted.

"Usually you want to scroll down to where you left off last time and that can take hours," she said.

So, is Tumblr here to stay? Or will it join the ranks of passing fancy such as LikeALittle and Chatroulette?

According to Brandariz, Tumblr will stay popular because of the unique features it offers.

"It's so different from other social networking sites," she said. "With MySpace and Facebook, you network through them. Tumblr is kind of a story of your life."


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